Top Receiver Jesse Legree Returns to Oregon State for 2027 Sophomore Season

WHO:

CBS Sports - Jesse Legree is an Oregon State freshman wide receiver and a midseason CBS Sports All-America selection.

ESPN - Legree was ranked the No. 89 receiver in the 2026 recruiting class by ESPN and arrived at Oregon State as a three-star recruit.

CBS Sports - Oregon State head coach JaMarcus Shephard said general manager Eron Hodges urged him to watch Legree, whom Shephard identified as the first player he watched as the Beavers’ head coach and the first player he knew they wanted.

CBS Sports - Legree’s high school coach was Messay Hailemariam; he attended St. Frances Academy in Baltimore.

ESPN - Legree named Shephard and coordinators Mitch Dahlen and Mike MacIntyre as coaches who would help build Oregon State into a national powerhouse.

WHAT:

CBS Sports - Legree is 5-foot-9.

CBS Sports - Legree said he missed having a signing-day celebration the previous year and described signing with Oregon State for the 2027 to 2028 season as a chance to have one.

CBS Sports - Legree played basketball growing up and played defensive back during his first three years of high school football.

CBS Sports - Oregon State transfer quarterback Braden Atkinson also faces a decision about his 2027 future.

Fox News - Legree held a signing ceremony on the fourth Saturday of October to announce he would stay with Oregon State next season.

CBS Sports - Legree announced he would return to Oregon State for his sophomore season and re-signed with the Beavers for the 2027 to 2028 season.

ESPN - Legree announced he had re-signed with Oregon State for 2027.

CBS Sports - Legree had 46 receptions, 1,040 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns; CBS Sports described his yardage and touchdown totals as nation-leading.

ESPN - Legree led the nation with 1,040 receiving yards, 14 touchdown catches and 148.6 receiving yards per game.

CBS Sports - Legree had won seven consecutive Pac-12 Freshman of the Week awards.

ESPN - Legree recorded 136 receiving yards against Houston in the opener; against Texas Tech, he had 240 yards and two touchdowns on eight catches. He caught a touchdown pass in every game and scored three against Colorado State.

CBS Sports - Oregon State’s offense ranked sixth nationally in yards per play (7.32), fifth in yards per game (527), and fourth in scoring (42.7 points per game).

CBS Sports - Oregon State’s record was 5-2. ESPN reported the Beavers were on a five-game winning streak and in first place in the Pac-12 after winning their first three league games.

WHERE:

CBS Sports - Legree announced his decision from his home gym in Baltimore, Maryland, during a live CBS Sports HQ appearance.

ESPN - Legree had planned to announce at St. Frances Academy in Baltimore.

WHY:

CBS Sports - Legree said the return was about loyalty and explained that Oregon State had given him an opportunity.

ESPN - Legree said, “I fell in love with the culture out there,” and said announcing during the bye week could help attract more talent to Corvallis.

CBS Sports - Legree said he wanted the announcement to put doubts about his future and transfer-portal speculation to rest.

HOW:

CBS Sports - Hodges texted Hailemariam that Legree “has a home with us if he wants it. We want to take him.” Shephard said Oregon State began recruiting Legree after he watched his highlight and basketball footage.

ESPN - Legree said, “This is going to become the start of a national powerhouse.”

Oregon State wide receiver Jesse Legree is returning for his sophomore season, re-signing with the Beavers for 2027. The freshman announced his decision from his home gym in Baltimore, saying he wanted to end speculation about a possible transfer. Legree said Oregon State had given him an opportunity, and that he had fallen in love with the program’s culture. A midseason CBS Sports All-America selection, he leads the nation with 1,040 receiving yards, 14 touchdown catches and 148.6 yards per game. He has scored in every game and earned seven straight Pac-12 Freshman of the Week awards. Oregon State coach JaMarcus Shephard said Legree was the first player he watched after taking the job and the first he knew the Beavers wanted. The team is 5-2, riding a five-game winning streak and leading the Pac-12.